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Essential Investing

Updated today

Client assets under management

$39,850,215

Clients

87

10% high-net worth

Advisors

2

of 2 employees

Firm type

Supported

1-3 advisors or $200M+ in AUM

Clients per advisor

44

Typical

Average account size

$458,048

About

Essential Investing serves individual investors, including high‑net‑worth clients, as well as foundations and charitable organizations, offering integrated financial planning, retirement-plan advice, and ongoing portfolio management. Financial planning is incorporated into its portfolio management engagements and delivered under written engagement agreements with continuous supervision.

The firm’s investment approach centers on a passive, indexing core with tactical opportunities informed by fundamental analysis of economic and sector factors, aiming for diversified, tax‑efficient, low‑cost portfolios. Portfolios may include mutual funds, ETFs, individual securities and non‑traded alternatives, and the firm discusses and implements private equity, hedge funds or fund‑of‑funds, REITs and similar alternative strategies when appropriate; accounts are managed on discretionary and nondiscretionary bases.

Compared with similarly sized supported advisers, the firm is notable for providing portfolio management to pooled investment vehicles and serving pooled‑vehicle clients (for example, private investment structures or fund‑of‑funds) alongside its individual and charitable clients, an offering that is statistically uncommon among peers. Leadership holds advanced degrees and maintains outside governance and professional roles, and the firm generally leaves proxy voting and corporate action decisions to clients rather than voting securities on their behalf.

Client services

Financial planning Portfolio management

Expertise

General retirement planning Income planning Cash flow / budgeting

Fee options

Percentage

$0 - $99,999: 1.25% annually $100,000 - $999,999: 1.00% annually $1,000,000 - $4,999,999: 0.875% annually $5,000,000+: 0.75% annually

Other

Fee-only: Fees are asset-based only; no commissions or performance-based fees are charged.

Main office location

Essential Investing

13802 N 32 Nd St #14

Phoenix AZ 85032, United States

Number of offices

1

Most active in

Arizona · Texas

Disclosures

Exclamation point means they have disclosures of this type. Check mark means no disclosures of this type were found.

Business activities & affiliations

Advisors at this firm

user avatar

Jarrod R

Series 65

Phoenix, AZ

Essential Investing

Jarrod Rice is a financial advisor at Essential Investing with a Series 65 designation and two years of industry experience. He has worked at Essential Investing Wealth Management since 2024 and concurrently serves as a special projects manager at Mercy Care, a nonprofit where he oversees administration of federal and state grant funding. Essential Investing provides integrated financial planning and portfolio management to individuals, high-net-worth clients, not-for-profits, and family entities. The firm employs a predominantly passive, focused-indexing investment approach supplemented by tactical opportunities and fundamental analysis, emphasizing diversification, tax efficiency, and low-cost investments.

General retirement planning Income planning Cash flow / budgeting
user avatar

John M

Series 65

Phoenix, AZ

Essential Investing

John Mersek is a financial advisor at Essential Investing with 11 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and has been with Essential Wealth Management, LLC since 2015. Outside of his advisory role, he serves as an investment committee member for both the DEK Foundation, a charitable organization, and the Knauss Family LLC, a closely held family entity. Essential Investing provides integrated financial planning and portfolio management to individual and high-net-worth clients, as well as not-for-profit and family entities. The firm employs a predominantly passive, focused-indexing investment approach supplemented by tactical opportunities and fundamental analysis, emphasizing diversification, tax efficiency, and low-cost investments.

General retirement planning Income planning Cash flow / budgeting
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